FRI & SAT 16 & 17 | He’s been nominated for nine Grammys; shared Newark Festival’s stage with the Rolling Stones’ Mick Taylor; is signed by legendary bass player Andy Fraser – and, in his native UK, he’s barely old enough to vote. Tobi Earnshaw, just 18 years old and already being critically compared to rock monoliths John Mayer, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Eric Clapton, is rather more boy-next-door than such accolades might imply. Until, that is, his fingertips meet the strings of a guitar. The only artist handpicked by Andy Fraser, of Free fame, for his label Mctrax international, Tobi is poised to release his second album as he arrives in Phnom Penh this week for his first tour of Asia. Cornered recently by The Advisor to talk man-crushes, the strange bathroom habits of the man responsible for 1970 hit All Right Now, and being called by dmme.net the ‘British answer to Justin Bieber’, Tobi had this to say: “As a musician I’m really critical, so if I was asked to define myself I don’t know; I just sort of sing a melody and try to stay in tune! There are pop magazines who say: ‘We won’t take you because you’re too blues for us.’ Then there are blues magazines that say: ‘We won’t take you because you’re not blues enough.’ I’ve had interviews with MOBO… and there’s something else I was going to say but I’ve completely forgotten what. I’m having a senior moment and I’m only 18! I’ve been doing radio interviews all week and this keeps happening; it’s ridiculous!” Bless.
WHO: Tobi
WHAT: “Likened to John Mayer and Robin Thicke, TOBI is actually right in the middle of the two, with a smooth sound enriched by perfect guitar sweeps.” – Music-News.com
WHERE: Latin Quarter, Street 178 (August 16); The Village, #1 Street 360 (August 17)
WHEN: 9pm August 16 (Latin Quarter), 8:30pm August 17 (The Village)
WHY: “Having Tobi not only on the Grammy eligibility list but in multiple categories is confirmation of my initial instincts that here is a new, young artist to be reckoned with” – Andy Fraser